PolicyMic Staff Throwback Thursday: Where We Were Five Years Ago

A lot can happen in a few years. Just five years ago, the App Store made its debut, Obama was but a wee President-elect, and Miley Cyrus was making headlines for sexing up her good girl image (I guess some things never change).

Millennials love nostalgia, so in honor of #ThrowbackThursday here's a look at what some PolicyMic staffers were up to in the years before we became PolicyMic staffers. We'll probably Benjamin Button this segment, so keep an eye out for awkward middle school dance pics and toddler glamour shots in the future. But for now, let's take things slow; after all, five years is like 152 in internet time.

Five years ago we were...

1. Forgetting to put on pants.

This photo was taken in the San Pedro de Atacama desert in Chile—a dry place, and a place I was so excited about seeing, I forgot to not wear pajama pants in public. At the time I lived in Santiago, which was my home for 2.5 years and the headiest, most exhilarating/infuriating/bewildering adventure of my life. So far.

2. Asking ourselves tough questions.

Five years ago I was a senior at Princeton University. I was living in a dorm with all of my best friends, taking a lot of literature courses, and really procrastinating the post graduation question. I was probably stressing over what to write my thesis about and what to wear to the next theme party. I remember thinking those were very consuming questions, but college has a real knack for under-preparing you for the real world! Life's not all theme parties and academic musings, kids!

3. Failing to assassinate Gerald Ford.

Five years ago I was Squeaky Fromme in a college production of Assassins (along with PolicyMic pundit Brian Polk!).This meant I got toplay with a toy gun and sing a love song to Charles Manson onstage (every little girl's dream).

—Julianne Ross, Deputy Culture Editor

4. (Not) drinking out of cups.

I was a junior in college studying abroad at the University of Ghana, a school of about 30,000 students—mostly Ghanaians, but a good amount of Nigerians. We used to drink these ketchup packet-like things of vodka. They were about as safe as the plastic bags of water you could buy on the street. You were doomed either way; it was always an adventure in some form of Murphy's Law. We used to say "WAWA" meaning, "West Africa wins again."

5. Standing close to scandal.

Oh wow, five years ago. Five years ago I was in my junior year of college, getting my paperwork together so that I could go study in Madrid the next semester. That was also the semester I learned some incredibly valuable lessons about burnout and how working all the time is not actually admirable or healthy. (Still grateful that I learned those lessons fairly early in life.) And 2008 was the summer I did my first internship in D.C. and where I took this photo of myself in front of the Mayflower Hotel, where Eliot Spitzer had slept with a prostitute just months earlier. Ahh, memories.

6. Feelin' good.

I was just embarking on my second year at McGill University as the executive at one of the greatest groups on campus called Feel Good Day Club. We organized an event called "recess" for students to relax, have fun and de-stress during midterms. We organized pumpkin carvings, bought way too many balloons, gave out free candy (and condoms!) and let everyone let loose with colorful chalk. The sole purpose of our club was to make people feel good and 90% of our budget went to buying candy. I miss that club!

7. Bonding over toilets.

My dad broke his leg two weeks before he was supposed to help me move into my dorm and start my freshman year of college, so I took care of him at home before flying off by myself. I spent a week scrubbing toilets in dorm rooms before school started because it was the free pre-orientation program. Plus side: I met my former roommates (and one of my current roommates!) that week, and they are gems.

8. Panicking.

Five years ago, I was starting my victory lap at North Carolina State University. Of course, the market crashed in 2008, and I was starting to panic about that extra year in college. Apart from the what-will-I-do-with-my-life-now-that-the-economy-is-screwed panic, I enjoyed working at NC State's bookstore, writing, and panicking about graduating.